


Love blooms with the flowers

by GenuineGayGraces



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop, Alternate Universe - Never Met, Crying, M/M, Past Character Death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-23
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:40:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25133296
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GenuineGayGraces/pseuds/GenuineGayGraces
Summary: he didn’t want to seem weird for coming in without buying something… even if his true reason for entering the shop this time was to catch a glimpse at the beautiful yet lonely owner. “Hello Bokuto-san, how have you been?”ORFlower shop au where Bokuto stumbles into Akaashi's humble establishment in search of peony's for his mother's upcoming funeral.
Relationships: Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou
Comments: 2
Kudos: 7





	1. Bokuto stumbles into Bloom co.

**Author's Note:**

> AHHHH so i forgot that im in love w flower shop au so i just decided to make one for my otp (bokuaka) and the first paragraph is suppose to be a present introduction then the rest is a flash back to the past of how bokuaka met by fate. YES i know that Akaashi's welcomeness to an utter stranger is quite out of character for him since he is so reserved most of the time but in this au... akaashi doesnt get much visitors and is lonely because of it... also he thinks bokuto is hot so why not comfort him ;). The characters are aged up to mid 20's btw

The dark blue of the forget-me-nots matched the flower shop owners eyes, Bokuto decided wisely on purchasing them, he didn’t want to seem weird for coming in without buying something… even if his true reason for entering the shop this time was to catch a glimpse at the beautiful yet lonely owner. “Hello Bokuto-san, how have you been?” 

\-----

Bokuto had first stumbled upon this quaint shop when he was slightly tipsy, looking for a store to order flowers from for his mother’s funeral. He hadn’t been sober since her passing 2 weeks ago, he was put to the easy task of finding a place to get his mother’s favorite flowers for the affair at a reasonable price in bulk. He stood in the way of the door for some time while observing the place of business, whoever owned it took very good care of it, and the products themselves were very beautiful, natural beauty that didn’t need decoration of colored paint, glue-on glitter, or pumps of chemicals to look more appealing like other flower shops might.  
“Hello sir, how may I help you…” were the first words out of an angels mouth that Bokuto had ever witnessed, the sight of the gorgeous man dulled the appearance of the flowers, his dark hair made his bright eyes stand out and rose petal lips glistened in the nice lighting of the store; he was wearing a dirty apron and gloves stained of soil. They both stood there when the taller man couldn’t say anything back as he began crying… maybe it was because he hadn’t had the chance to mourn his beloved mother’s death, his drunken stupor, a newly developed allergy to nature’s creation, or the conclusion he had made about being happy to die if the paradisal looking working was the last thing he saw. The male that occupied the store with him paused there for a bit, unsure of how to comfort his crying customer, he came closer but stayed at a far distance still to ask the tearful man if he was having an allergic reaction, Bokuto could only shake his head along with the uncontrollable sniffling. The employee removed his apron and gloves as he went to the back of the store, leaving the owl to his devices for a time, thinking he was too much to deal with till the worker came back with some water, aspirin, and tissues at hand with speed. The blue eyes urged the yellow ones to sit down in the cozy waiting area supplied with 2 loveseats, the owl dropped into the vintage chair as the raven kneeled before him, the scene of the kneeling man and crying one made it almost look as if the employee was proposing, on his knees to catch every falling tear. Each man gazed at each other, Bokuto because he had nowhere else he wanted to look and the stranger for the same exact reason along with the fact that he needed to observe the good eyes for any leaving droplets to wipe at. The kneeling male made the buffer one drink the cooling liquid as he worked gently to wipe the tears from his red cheeks, they stayed like this for a time till Bokuto had come to his senses to how ridiculous he was acting to a stranger. I’m sorry,” the owl rose to leave, “I shouldn’t bother you with this, I’ll be going now…” it hurt the man to turn his head and not look at the beautiful creature who had been so kind to offer their aid to the sad man, just as he began to take steps away, he felt a temperate hand take hold of his hot wrist. “Please don’t leave, I don’t mind at all if you stay, in fact, I’d prefer it that way” was what got the buff man to stay by the side of the very persuasive male, who begged mostly with his eyes, waves crashing around a widened pupil, he allowed the raven to back to his work of cleaning Bokuto up. The silence overtook the light wiping of delicate tissue and quick sniffs of snot, the flower shop worker whispered rationally “We don’t have to talk about if you don’t want to, but I am a good listener.” Bokuto chucked at the words of the angel in the flesh, he was very persuasive to make Bokuto speak about something no one usually confessed to a total stranger “I miss my mom very much, so much that it hurts.” The laborer’s eyes went big at the honesty and nodded his head in understanding, a melancholic look on his face shone in relation, “you came for flowers then, yes?” He patted Bokuto’s arm that laid on the armrest, fingers gripping the cushion harshly while the other limb held his chest as to calm the heart that shook in pain.”Yes,” the owl resembling male chokes out, swallowing a lump in his throat before continuing, “her favorite was peony’s” thinking of his late mother really released the waterworks now, the consuming of alcohol leaving him unable to hold in his wails of sadness. Bokuto was never a sad drunk but these days felt different not being able to call his mother every Wednesday and Saturday for a life update, the hurt of not having her there to come to at the end of a long day. The unnamed man still kneeled there, looking up at the customer with shiny eyes just feeling very sad for the son who lost his mom, it seemed that the buff male had reached the breaking point of his deprivation, a broken dam releasing water, he smelt slightly of booze but the worker could relate to needing a bottle here and there for when reality gets too hard. It was very out of character for the stranger to admit anything of his too, but seeing the sobbing male above him cry about something that he, himself, went through made his mouth open to speak “, my mom’s favorite was marigolds…” the employee of the shop shut his mouth quickly after out of fear of saying too much. Bokuto’s hiccuping ceased to fully focus on the man below him, comforting him through his mother’s death when the prepossessing male had just admitted that he understood some of what the crying man above him was going through, the flower shop man’s own mother had passed some time ago but the loss was still a large hole in the florist’s chest. Bokuto felt a little warm when seeing a man who could relate to him say something truthful about himself “I’m sorry for your loss,” was all the two could whisper to each other as each silently cried in honor of the loving woman who gave birth to them. Bokuto pulled the unfamiliar but pretty man to sit in the other chair beside him as they both just absorbed and took in the reality, eyes blinking hard to let out the fat tears. They sat there in shared condolences unknowing of what else there was to say, they had both lost the most important women in their lives and they were desolate to see that actuality come true. Yes, they knew that their mother would leave them as that is how the way life goes but to actually have it happen is nothing short of heartbreaking and life-ruining.  
Once they had slightly calmed down, the worker said to the owl “I’m Akaashi and this was my mom’s shop, would you like to come in for a drink? And so I can clean you up much better, it’s time for me to close the place customer-sama.” Bokuto gazed at the man who just introduced himself and invited him to his home in one sweep, infatuation gnawing at his red cheeks to say yes. “Please call me Bokuto, I hope I’m not a bother,” the nervous man admitted to the more confident one as he accepted the welcome to the home that was on the second level of the flower shop. Akaashi led him to the narrow stairs and gestures for the owl to go first, he wanted to stay behind him in case the tall man stumbled in the steps in his tipsy state. Little did Akaashi know, Bokuto was completely sobered up from the good cry and the slap in his face of the raw beauty the raven possessed, today had been a whirlwind of newness that was still happening.  
The second story of the building was cozy, a spacious living room paired with a slightly packed restroom on the right, under the stairs that led to the third story of the home, and kitchen on the other side of the level for foodstuff; There was even a place set apart from the leisure where a grand window allowed for growing small flower saplings that could be better nurtured at the top of the property where the greenhouse occupied it.  
“This is a nice place,” the paler male murmured as he was guided to sit at the plush couch that was dark velvet red to match the earthy tones of the theme of the room. Akaashi turned the T.V. on to late-night cartoons that millennials would watch during their childhood, popcorn popped in the microwave and crunched in their mouths once it was done. The pleasant aura of the space gave both men peace that was much needed, Bokuto knew that this was quite the unusual circumstance for him to be lured into a stranger’s home with the promise of comfort that was not the sexual kind he would usually receive from a willing and temporary partner after a night out, the same train of thought was in Akaashi’s mind as he thought of the times he brought people home from nights at the bar, this is very different indeed. The clouded thoughts left them as the cartoon episode of a french mouse capturing Jerry’s attention, making Tom feel very ignored from his rivals regularly scheduled duels with him; The attractive french mouse and Jerry smooched, the small audience, Bokuto and Akaashi, blushed at the romance of it. “Bokuto-san…” the raven began to speak till the intrusive ping! of Bokuto’s phone rang, it was Bokuto’s father calling, most likely to check on his findings. The yellow-eyed man gave the raven an apologetic smile as Akaashi gestured for him to answer the phone, “Hey, hey, dad.” The conversation was light and the larger man seemed in higher spirits, Bokuto telling his father of the establishment he was still at, still “searching,” the owl gave Akaashi a teasing grin at his words, the black-haired man couldn’t help the giggle that left him as Bokuto wiggled his eyebrows then pouted at the scolding he received from his father for staying so late, maybe hurting the worker’s sleep schedule. “You’re right, I should get going…” Bokuto spoke directly to his father and indirectly to the flower shop owner, Akaashi could not control the frown that showed his distaste for the idea as he shook his head quickly as a refute to the awful suggestion. The yellow eyes caught the portrayal of disagreement and gave a hearty laugh, “he seems to want me to stay though, I’ll be home late, ya love you too, bye.” The phone call ceased, Bokuto scooted closer to the other man who was very welcoming to the action, “thank you for staying,” was all Akaashi could courageously muster up from his nervous body when Bokuto fully turned to face the shy male, no longer wanting to be side-to-side but instead face-to-face, “thank you for taking care of me” was his reply back. The blue-eyed male shivered at Bokuto’s wording, there was something in his nature that made him want to take care of the older, whether that be wiping his tears or fully giving himself to bed.  
Very out of character, the raven shuffled his body to face the owl too, he gulped at his next words while staring into the yellow irises, “please stay the night, Bokuto-san” he tightly closed his eyes and hung his head low in wait after saying the hasty proposal. Hoping that Bokuto didn’t get the wrong idea, Akaashi continues on with his suggestion to block out the silence, “I would like you to stay, not for anything that would require much hesitation, but because I would like someone to hold and someone to hold me back tonight, literally… as in spooning…” He raises his head to see what facial expression the owl might be wearing in reaction to his explanation, he was met with a gaze of wonder as Bokuto smiled sweetly and said back “I would also like to cuddle you, Akaashi, only if we can switch spoon positions every once and a while though.”  
The deal was made, a silly gesture of trade with a shake of hands that earned each male the experience of hearing laughter from them. Bokuto was mesmerized in Akaashi’s sounds of joy, like bells, the laugh tinged the air with delight and Akaashi felt a similar feeling to Bokuto’s hearty chuckles, they made him feel included and secure-the laughs were never fake and always craved to be heard again.  
After their good fill of nostalgic shows airing in the late hours of the night, they yawned to signal their growing tiredness and Akaashi was in the lead to show Bokuto up to the highest floor, the bedroom and such. The stairwell creaked with their quiet and slow steps, revealing the large bedroom with many houseplants and hanging vines around the canopy bed with a king mattress. Two doors were on the same floor, presumably a restroom and closet. “Here’s a change of clothes for you, the underwear is freshly washed. I’ll show you to the bathroom…” The walk to the tiled space was brief and a little awkward, the owl cleaned up first and exited the washroom with dripping, flat hair. Akaashi was sitting at the edge of the bed next to two steaming beverages in mugs on the nightstand, feet dangling whilst being stared at by his blue eyes till he heard the larger man come toward him. His usually emotionless face showed shock at the new appearance Bokuto wore with the hair being down, he couldn’t decide if he preferred it down, dripping wet, or up, high and dry. He chose which way he preferred in that moment, “like it this way,” he whispered as the tall male stood in front of him, lowering his head to allow the sitting male to touch the watery strands. The room was dark, the yellow eyes seemed to be a beacon of light, calling on Akaashi to go further with his rising hand; the moonlight shone on the pale skin of Bokuto’s and olive of Akaashi’s. The younger man couldn’t think of a better time to slip his hand underneath the tight shirt of the owls, feel up the hard abs and kiss him lazily and sloppy till morning. The still sitting man snapped out of his flirting episode to offer the standing male some drink. In a rush to forget his sensual thoughts he just had, Akaashi offered “Ginkgo tea? It’s still warm, I’ll be going in now.” The raven found the time to clean up around the room a little and make the drink while Bokuto washed up. Akaashi pushed the still-warm tea into Bokuto’s large hands as he rose to enter the still-steamed room, he felt the other calloused hand grip his wrist gently, an action on Bokuto’s part to get the younger's attention like how Akaashi had earlier downstairs. “Thank you for the tea and everything…” Both men were on their feet, almost eye level if the shorter one went on his tippy toes, Bokuto looked very seductive with his golden eyes staring the smaller male down, the water droplets going from his downy hair to flexing biceps, the towel on his shoulders wrinkled. The owl watched as the gorgeous flower keeper gave a small smile and said in reply, “I’m glad you came, Bokuto-san,” the door to the washroom closed, and the owls good hearing allowed him to know the water began as Akaashi went in. The muscly man went to sit in the same spot the other man was in, he sipped the warm tea and squeezed his eyes shut in hopes to not get a hard-on from thinking of the naked man washing in the other room, tracing his body with a loofah as soapy suds slid off the tantalizing curves of his body. The beverage gave him a faint feeling of sleepiness, or perhaps it was the exhausting mental challenges he was going through, he yawned and stretched to lay on the bed, briefly wondering about how Akaashi slept on the bed. Did he curl into a fetus looking ball? Did he hug his pillow in loneliness? Did he bring someone into the rich bed every night? His intruding thoughts were halted as the man he was presently thinking about came out of the other space, a cold of steam following his still moist body. His scent was of green apples and a fleeing spicy aroma, his arms were up to towel at his inky curls with the drying cloth as he came toward Bokuto. The raven was mesmerizing without having to put any effort into his looks, Bokuto wasn’t easy in any way but he’d be willing to do anything the flower keeper asked for him, he was already wrapped around the blue-eyed man’s long finger. “Ya know,” the owl began, “I don’t usually get into store owner’s beds so easily…” The buff male was on the farthest side of the bed for the smaller man to have room to lay down when he came out of the shower, Akaashi used this space to his advantage as he began to crawl toward the owl at a slow pace, taunting Bokuto to do something about it as he replied: “and I don’t usually let customers into my bed so easily…” They both have each other clownish grins at their unmentionable implications as Bokuto opened his arms in warm welcoming to the crawling male. Akaashi finally reached Bokuto to where he was and began laying next to his, wrapping one arm around the hard chest and the other under the owl’s pale neck to be a cushion, he tucked his head under Bokuto’s chin, giving the owl full access to his scented hair. Before getting comfortable with the position, Akaashi questioned “is this okay?” Bokuto hummed in affirmation to how they were placed on the bed, the curtains were still slightly opened for the moonlight to leak into the wood-paneled room. Both of them were warm from the nice shower, hot tea, and body heat circulated so only a single comforter was covering their cuddling bodies as they clung to each other. None would be able to admit yet, but more than flowers were blooming at the small flower shop named Bloom co.


	2. Wake up and smell the flowers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An early morning for newly blooming BokuAka, we delve deeper into Bokuto's situation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay... i completely understand that the scenario is super unlikely to everhappen.. like, even i wouldnt invite a stranger crying into my bed for cuddles but i swear this story will become realistic soon enough, 2 SENTENCES OF SMUT HERE

As stupid as it sounded, Akaashi felt as if their bodies were molded specifically to be together as if the creator made measurements based on each body to allow him to slot perfectly with Bokuto’s. Throughout the night, their bodies moved position but the fact that they were always touching, whether it be an arms wrap or back to front, was set in stone. Any resistance of the newly developed feeling was futile, it was painfully obvious how comfortable each male made the other one feel. They woke up to the warm light shining off their skin, Bokuto’s hair was slightly poofy from finally being dry while Akaashi’s was as naturally perfect as before. Both men stretched the sleep out of their bones but still lied in the bed, hoping that the sun would set instead of rising so they may have nice dreams again.

Akaashi rose early every morning to tend to the shop but he woke up to a large man holding him, pale yellow reaching out to stormy blue. The raven hummed in content to being woken so nicely as if this were his regularly scheduled program as if nothing was out of sorts whatsoever. Bokuto, on the other hand, was astounded, some insecure part of him demanded that he get off of the bed he dirted and jump out the window- as if he didn’t deserve this slice of happiness, the owl would listen to the insecurity if it weren’t for the majesty of the black eyelashes fluttering open and closed, trying to focus out the bright light and greet the owl’s big smile. So he stayed, watching the beautiful raven awaken from the deep sleep, he hummed a good morning to the owl and excused himself to the restroom. Bokuto remained in the still-warm bed, shaken from the complete paradise he was occupying, but it can’t last forever… he changed into his clothing from yesterday night, dry from the tear stains of the past. He had already put on the bottoms and was just about to have the shirt over his head till Akaashi came out of the restroom, toothbrush in his mouth and staring at the shirtless owl. “Ah,” the raven mumbled through his foamy mouth, toothpaste on his lips, “Sorry to interrupt…” The owl blinked at him and couldn’t help but notice that even though Akaashi seemed like the kind of person to look away at the sight of a half-naked person, he still looked as Bokuto scrambled to put on the last of his garments. The toothbrushing male was standing at the door still gazing at Bokuto, the taller man couldn’t tell if the look on his face was sadness in the hint that he would be leaving soon from changing clothes or desire to want to touch Bokuto’s shirtless body, only Akaashi knew how he felt. Bokuto was pretty spot on with how the ravens face may hint how he felt, the ebony-haired man was feeling a sense of bittersweet, he got to spend a lonely night with a lovely man, got to see him shirtless, and got to see him dress himself to leave, it made Akaashi sad to know that Bokuto would leave. Bokuto finally had his shirt on and went close to Akaashi, the raven stiffened a bit at the close perimeters till the other male said back, “there’s nothing to apologize for, but you didn’t really seem sorry while staring at me…” Akaashi looked up to the man that was now slightly above him, they being close in height, he blushed hard to what Bokuto was concluding with his own foolish actions, there was no way he could get out of the confrontation. “Well, you see…” the owl seemed to be interested in whatever defense Akaashi had for himself, “I just…” the raven thickly swallowed, wishing that the floor could swallow him instead, he sweated profusely and finally gave up on an excuse, “...ugh.” It was no use, Bokuto was carved like a Greek god, if Akaashi was to get a genie in a bottle, he would wish for the three wishes to all involve the multicolor-haired man. The owl didn’t seem offended at Akaashi’s actions, instead, he was amused, he grinned at the shorter male and ruffled his curled hair. It was a gesture that Akaashi could get used to, he felt the hot hand warm his scalp like a hot towel for a sauna, he closed his eyes in bliss and went on his tippy toes to push into the touch, Bokuto chuckled at the adorable action of the younger. 

If the silver-haired man could have it his way, he would carry Akaashi into the messy bed bridal style, he would consummate their time together by grinding into the sexy male, going deeper than any other person, making Akaashi feel the way he had never felt before. He would kiss the male into submission, till the smallmouth dribbled out their combined drool and he begged for Bokuto to release inside of the cute hole. 

Woah, get yourself together Bo, the owl thought to himself, he started counting in order to focus on not getting a hard-on at a guest’s home; Akaashi looked at him with curious eyes, patiently waiting for the owl to say something, anything. “You make me feel better,” the golden eyes spoke to the blue ones, the raven's eyes felt wet as Bokuto pulled him in for a reassuring hug. The words were genuine and made Akaashi feel warm inside, a feeling that the raven hadn’t felt in a while. The raven had been so reserved his whole life, never giving one night stands a call and always making sure to watch what he says, but right now, at this moment, he had no care for anything except Bokuto. Unfortunately, Akaashi has been tight-lipped his whole life he wanted Bokuto to sweep him off his feet, but he knew that a rushed relationship may lead to future consequences of not establishing each person's standards for the affair. “Me too…” he whispered back to the male who held him against their chest. The raven quickly added to his statement, hoping that Bokuto wouldn’t mind his honest words that are only meant for good “I don’t want this to be rushed through, I would like to take this slow so I may get to know you... please understand.” The owl beamed a big smile at him, Akaashi first feeling the widening mouth against his forehead and then seeing it when Bokuto pulled him away to note back “, good idea, I would like to be your first customer of the day.” 

The two-tone-haired man texted his father good morning and explained his welcoming hospitality of the flower shop owner. His dad bid him good luck on his conquest of the attractive male and a good purchase of peonies. The pair of men made their way to the lowest floor of the quaint building, the store was opened for the day with little hassle. The raven roamed the floor making sure everything was tidy, brushing his fingers on colorful petals of magnificent bouquets and counting the change at the register for the elderly that purchased arrangements in cash. “I have a special spot for the peony arrangements…” Akaashi showed Bokuto to the section of the shop for peony’s, a nice corner that you could see from the store window, giving them much needed clout. The flowers were marvelous, the shades were on a holy level and they were strong, strong enough to put up with the strong hands of Bokuto grabbing them-trying to replicate the feeling of his mother’s soft hair. A long-forgotten memory hit Bokuto like a smack to the face.

“Koutarou, Mommy loves these flowers you brought her, I love them so much that I am going to put them in my favorite antique vase!” Little Koutarou beams at his mom’s praise for finding the wild peony’s on the other side of their backyard, a spacious spread of cleared forest. The little son watches his mom put water into the vase first and the delicate flowers next, he sees a black speck on one peony scramble about the thick stem, close to his mom’s hand where she held nature. A sudden fear hit little Bo as he screamed his warnings of seeing a spider almost go onto his beautiful mother’s unblemished skin. “MOMMY NO!” The tiny child smacks the greenery out her hand, smashing the arachnid out of hatred for its threat it posed to his dear mother, in his quick actions of making the flowers fall to the floor and stepping on the crawling creature, small Bokuto accidentally smashed the peony’s in the process, their velvety petals crushed under the small shoe of Bokuto’s. The spider was dead, the fear of it biting his mom now gone, Momma Bokuto stared at her son’s meltdown to eliminate the spider, guilt rushed through the tiny owl as he looked up at his mom with tear-filled eyes. “I’M SORRY OKAASAN! I DIDN’T MEAN TO HURT THE PRETTY FLOWERS! I JUST MEANT TO KILL THE SPIDEY!” The son wailed as the mom took the child a little too big to carry in her arms, he sobbed into her broad shoulder as she hushed him sweetly. “I know, Kouchan, I know, you saved me from the spider, I’m so glad you saved me, don’t worry about the flowers, we can find more, my little owl.” His hiccups quieted as she reassured patted his back as she rocked him in her arms, he felt bad for ruining the peony’s but felt so happy his mom loved him so much to forgive his clumsiness, he never wanted to lose her, ever.” 

“Bokuto-san, are you okay? We can sit down if you like…” Akaashi brushed his hand along the spaced-out owl, bringing Bokuto back to the present as he let go of the vivid peonies that were flashback triggering for the multi-colored head of the owl. “Sorry about that, I’m fine, you can go tend to your other customers… I’ll be here.” Concern flashed on the raven’s face still till Bokuto gave him a reassuring smile to calm his nerves, both of their nerves that is, Akaashi went to ask if an elderly man needed help selecting an item, the man said yes to the aid because he was in need of a gift for his wife, whom he had an anniversary with this day. The buff male viewed Akaashi helping the man pick exact flowers, recommending orchids to pop out the bouquet and lilacs to contrast the yellow roses the man wanted. The mourning son went to the task at hand, he shook his head as an inner scolding to himself, he knew that his mom didn’t care for what shade the peony is, just that it was a peony. He was most likely going to make Akaashi sold out of peony’s for a bit as he stayed in place, waiting for the ebony-haired man to come to him. The raven was there in a heartbeat, Bokuto telling him what he wanted and Akaashi’s eyes going wide to the huge purchase, yes, the shop owner knew that it would be a bulk amount of flowers needed for a funeral, but Bokuto requesting *all* peony’s the shop had, even the still budding ones. This funeral must be a big deal, Akaashi thought to himself, he rang up Bokuto’s purchase, watching the owl unflinching face at the purchase… this man must be loaded, Akaashi again thought to himself; the kind of buy was the kind to make financially comfortable people sweat and shake in their boots. Harshly, the raven pinched himself for having such vain thoughts under the cash register as they finished the transaction, Akaashi promising to hold tight to the address of the home where he was to deliver most of the flowers to. “I’d like to stay longer, but I don’t want to disturb you while working and I have an appointment later on, I’ll come by soon.” Akaashi swallowed the lump down his throat that he didn’t even know was there, he waved Bokuto off as a nice car came to pick up the man. The raven went about his day helping nervous teens perfect their flowers they planned to present to crushes and rich women looking for nice centerpieces to their new kitchens. At the end of the day he flopped onto his cold Bokuto-less bed feeling very empty, he was lonely and acted as if he had always had the warm owl by his side on the fluffy mattress. He turned onto the side where Bokuto had slept the night before and reveled in the imagery as he remembered the cozy sleep he earned from allowing a sad stranger into his domain. He shuffled around the spot some more, like a cat who kneaded the covers until he heard the sound of paper being crumpled under him. Akaashi and his quick reactions made him jump off the bed immediately, almost hitting his head on the bed pole that supported the see-through canopy, the stealthy man scanned the bed for the culprit of the noise and found it. His blue eyes settled on a pale yellow post-it note that laid in the spot where he just was, carefully, the raven picked up the light object with his thumb and pointer finger as he read the messy script message on the small note.

Bokuto Koutarou  
(080)-1234-5678- email@domain.com  
^...^  
/ o,o \  
|):::(|  
===w=w===

The scribbled out words were just how Akaashi would have imagined Bokuto’s penmanship to be, the small drawing of the owl seemed to be a well-repeated signature of sorts, it was a cute tendency. he smiled and laughed to himself as he held the paper as he went to lay back in his bed, pulling out his phone to compose a message to the number.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this chapter!!!!


	3. To be so lonely

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Akaashi meets Mr.Bokuto-san, the funeral comes, the estrange Bokuto comes, the rekindling stays

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> woo, this chap is a roller coaster of things and im honestly so sorry for it

The pair of men were avid texters to each other, Akaashi would talk about his success in trimming a delicate bonsai tree and Bokuto would talk about the various pets he had. Today Lulu the talking parrot wouldn’t stop mimicking Bokuto’s commands to the obedient dogs, the confused canines would follow the devious bird’s commands because their loyalty to their owner, Bokuto, was ‘channeling’ himself through the feathered animal. The real Bokuto had to scold the parrot and take away his dessert for the day, Akaashi laughed at the antics of all the chaotic animals and how the buff man still held them close to his heart even if they were all in trouble. He secretly wondered how the male dealt with all the crazy and numerous amounts of animals, Akaashi has had a pet or two in his life but having so many seem overwhelming.

Akaashi was diligent in his promise to deliver the peony’s, of course, the first time he visited the Bokuto residence was amazing, the dark mansion was the complete opposite from the bright whites of the inside that screamed modern minimalist, he bowed deeply to the elder Bokuto-san, he had a strong built like the younger Bokuto but his hair was fully black, he had the more calm demeanor to him and seemed to be a well-respected man with the way he carried himself. The elderly man smiled warmly at him, welcoming to his home, and Akaashi’s Bokuto was just behind him to grip the flower shop owner in a bear hug. The trio of men were all smiles till they came to the work truck to help in the delivery of the peonies into the big house. Both Bokuto’s were reverent in the handling of the peony’s, the blooms held a special place in both their hearts in the loving memory of the woman they both adore. 

The two kinsmen were able to carry the flowers with ease, the weight being nothing to their swelling muscles while Akaashi had chosen to take less of the weight in order to not overexert himself. The house had a special room set aside for the flowers, it gave it an easy path to the facet to have the blossoms watered accordingly and a decent amount of sunlight, Bokuto was sure to organize it to his liking while Akaashi and his father talked business and of the handling of flowers until the next delivery day, which was tomorrow. The talk was professional till Akaashi glanced at his crush quickly, desire to see his Bokuto nipped at him in the back of his mind, hoping that his averted eyes to the son of the man he was speaking to did not notice-but the old owl was sharp and he put a hand on Akaashi’s shoulder. “My Kotarou has been very happy since you came into his life, he was always close to his mother so please imagine my dread when he came to a low state of mind with her death. But after meeting you… he changed back to his well self, maybe an even better version of it. Thank you for taking care of my son, and if it’s not too much trouble… please continue caring for him.” The raven stared at the wise man, they beamed at each other when Akaashi answered the brief speech that ended with a welcome request by saying back “He makes me happy too, I will try my best, Bokuto-san.” Akaashi did a quick bow to be the pinky promise of it all as the younger Bokuto came up to them, exclaiming his finished work, dusting his hands together as if there was any dirt at all on his thick hands.

“Would you like to stay for dinner?” The elder questioned the other black-haired man lightly, “please stay for dinner! My dad makes a mean pork cutlet!” Bokuto agreed with his dad’s proposal with excitement, the father laughed at the compliment. The raven said yes to the invite while driving home to close early and dress properly, he felt like he was in a dream, Bokuto’s dad was quick to accept him and even invited him over, his crush looked very handsome in his home attire and he also looked glad to see Akaashi, nothing could spoil Akaashi’s good mood and luck. The dinner was nice, Akaashi impressed the men with his timing of grilling the Unagi just right to put on top of the Hitsumibushi meal that they all were thankful for. He drove home in the same high spirits as before, his spacious bed didn’t seem so cold as he drifted to a nice slumber. 

Over the course of that week, Akaashi would deliver the peony’s, the Bokuto men would aid him in putting them in the newly dubbed “flower room,” the Bokuto’s inviting Akaashi over for dinner, and Akaashi would dress in nicer clothing there that he had in the car since he decided to just close up the shop early for the rest of the week since he deserved the time for himself. The trio got along well together, their love for Japanese traditional cuisine was shared, the florist discovered his Bokuto’s enjoyment for French cafe music and slow jazz. Before the ebony-haired male would depart from the Bokuto’s he would check on the flowers in the room they occupied, this was the 5th time Akaashi had come to inspect the flowers in the over-crowded room. The scent of peony almost being overbearing and the pink tint didn’t leave his eyes till 30 minutes after being out of the premises, he usually executed his inspection quickly but tonight was different. 

The younger Bokuto had followed Akaashi to the area so the flower keeper could show him how to care for the flowers, for this inspection of his would be the last since today was his last delivery of the many peony’s he had brought the family. “And if you have any questions, well, you already have my number…'' The raven concluded his lesson on how to tend to the flowers as he attempted to stand up, his knees ached from all kneeling on the floor he did to be at the same level as the short blossoms. He wobbled as he rose, the owl was speedy to react, he wrapped his arms around the raven in order to catch him in case the smaller man may fall, or just because he wanted the crush that he hadn’t held for a week now. Akaashi had no grievances with the current situation and actually welcomed it, the touch starved man for Bokuto wrapped his long arms around the muscular back that was the multicolor-haired man’s. They stayed there, listening to each other’s breath, Bokuto’s was deep and warm while Akaashi’s was light and cool. “I don’t want this to be our last time here, I don’t want this to be my last time seeing you.” The owl whispered into the shell of the raven’s sensitive ear, he shuddered in reaction to the movement and answered back, “me too, Bokuto-san.”

\-----

“Hello, Bokuto-san, how have you been?” The raven was situated at the cash register to ring up Bokuto’s purchase of forget-me-nots, his eyes that matched the blue shade of flowers shined at the blossoms, “ah, how appropriate of you to buy these. I’d like to say that I’m sorry for your loss again…” the owl gave him a bittersweet smile to the thoughtful comment and noted how he was doing, “I’m doing okay these days, I’ll be putting these with her grave, thank you for the lovely gift.” The two attractive males stood there for a while, Bokuto couldn’t find any words to say to excuse the fact that his messages to Akaashi had become shorter and shorter and Akaashi couldn’t find how to speak of his reason for allowing Bokuto to stray. 

The truth was, after their last meeting in the flower room, the more outgoing male of the pair became more distant from Akaashi as his mother’s funeral inched closer to the present day on the calendar. The raven was aware of what day the funeral was, for he was invited but he didn’t feel as though he should attend out of respect for the late mother, he did present the Bokuto’s with a funeral gift of lilac-colored peonies, the older man was very proud of the color, the late wife was fond of the light purple shade, a fact that Akaashi learned from his Bokuto-san. He understood Bokuto’s gradual standoffish texting when the date was becoming more and more intruding. Akaashi just couldn’t decipher if Bokuto’s reason for going astray from what they had was due to the busy planning or the emotional toll of losing a family member took on someone, maybe it was both. But the blue eyes understood that this was something that was above him, even if he had lost his mother too, it was above him because it was painfully obvious that the rambunctious man felt things differently than he did so it was not the flower shop owners place to try and relate to what the mourning son was going through. 

On late nights, Akaashi regretted allowing Bokuto to slowly leave him, he held his phone in a death grip, trying to conjure up a message to tell the owl that even though Bokuto was his customer and someone that he literally slept with randomly, Akaashi has caught rather deep feelings for him, more than anyone he had ever thought he could. He made up a list of why Bokuto wasn’t even the man for him, like, the loud male was yet to disclose his career to Akaashi so he might possibly be a bum that sleeps on his dad's couch for all Akaashi knows, or, the loud man is a drunk... he did come into the shop that day rather tipsy, but he seemed to know how to sober up quite quickly from what Akaashi saw. These were all fake excuses the raven came up with to make Bokuto more forgettable in his mind, but that was rather impossible with how the man was an enigma that shone for the attention of Akaasi’s brain. It hurt the raven's heart to know that he must let Bokuto go through the pain and wait for the owl if Bokuto even ever wanted him back. Akaashi knew how to be patient but this was just one of those complex situations that he couldn’t help but think of during his lonely hours. 

The funeral was beautiful, Bokuto and his stubborn tears were witnesses to the peony’s radiating his mother’s beauty. It was like a son’s last goodbye to his birth giver, sure, he’d be able to come to her grand grave, put some flowers, cry to her gravestone. He missed her so much, some days it was too much to bear the loss. He couldn’t go outside, he skipped work, he lost contact with Akaashi. This wasn’t as bad as his last slump of when he heard the fatal news but this depressive episode was nowhere near the definition of ‘good.’ He knew exactly what he was doing to his flower shop crush, but he couldn’t help it, it was like passing up a perfect job opportunity, he knew oh so very well that what he was doing could be hurting Akaashi, but he just didn’t know what to do. He made a telepathic promise to the attractive florist that he would come soon, when he felt that he was ready, and he would apologize, get on his knees and ask for forgiveness, to get Akaashi back in his life. 

So here Bokuto was, standing at the cash register finishing the purchase of his forget-me-nots that only reminded him of the shade of blue the raven’s eyes had as if the color of the irises were demanding that the owl not leave him behind. The owl took glances around him, no one else was at the shop during this time of day and Akaashi might be mad at a confession during his work hours but Bokuto was a desperate man, he was suffering from a deficiency of not having enough of the snarky humor and blue eyes that only Akaashi could give him. It was breaking Bokuto’s heart to see the raven alone when the owl knew very well that this wasn’t the lifestyle Akaashi wanted forever, the slightly raised eyebrows of the ebony-haired ale showed Akaashi’s held back expression of desperation to hear something, anything from Bokuto. 

Not to be utterly helpless, but the shopkeeper would do anything to have the tall male back in his life, Bokuto didn’t even have to apologize for ghosting him after the wedding, it was all good as long as the boisterous owl would come back into his life because, as sad as it was, Akaashi had never felt happier and more comfortable with anyone else in his entire 27 years of living. But Akaashi knew better than to intrude on the mourning son when he had bigger problems to deal with. It would be unforgivable if Akaashi were to bust into Bokuto’s life and demand the attention he craved when the sad owl was at a low point of mental health, grieving his only mom. So even for all of Akaashi’s intelligence of having a whole MBA in business, he could not find the right words to explain why he let his crush stray away and why he thought it was better this way when it obviously wasn’t, both men had sore hearts because of their inaction and it showed. Bokuto cleared his throat to say something, “Remember that promise we made-“. The ebony-haired male interrupts him, “the last time we saw each other.” They looked at themselves with longing stares, all their feelings were above air, they just had to clarify it all. “I’m sorry for coming during your workday, Akaashi, but I really needed to see you.” The tall male gave a medium bow of apology and Akaashi waved it off, allowing the owl to continue his speech, “I haven’t been doing so well these past couple days and the only thing that made it worse is all my fault, is casting you aside. I didn’t really mean to do it, it just all became too much, you know? Like when you find the perfect person but it’s just not the right time. I just wanted to say that I’m sorry for leaving you behind, it wasn’t my intention.” 

The owl’s shoulders were visibly more slumped than they were when he first arrived at the store, he turned his back to leave, he had finished his speech. He decided last minute that he wouldn’t add a declaration of love, he had abandoned Akaashi so why would the raven just up and accept him like that, this was all too much, too much. He really did want to just confess himself to the raven, it would make him feel better, but he wouldn’t, he had to protect Akaashi from the harsh truth that may overstress the worker. Just as he was about to exit the humble flower shop, just almost past the door, he heard a choked sob of sadness behind him. Bokuto’s whole body turned quickly to see what exactly he thought he heard, and he was right. Akaashi was in the middle of the store now, he had been following Bokuto out as if to catch him but his silent tears came out as a loud cry as the raven realized that he wouldn’t reach the male in time; the tearful male choked out, “I don’t want this to be our last time here, I don’t want this to be my last time seeing you.” Bokuto had a flashback to the flower room, the last time they embraced and made the promise to see each other again, Akaashi still remembered the promise Bokuto made, word for word, and repeated it back to the owl insincerity. The sobbing wouldn’t stop, the owl quickly reached Akaashi’s side, he didn’t know if it was right to touch the crying male so he hovered his hands to almost touching the tear-stained face of the shop owner. The raven pushed his face to meet the thick hands, a loud acceptance to Bokuto’s quiet request. The buff male felt his eyes well up with tears at seeing his crush weeping so he began crying with him in a much lower volume.

Akaashi pushed his slim body into Bokuto’s so they were embracing, the owl still held the raven’s beautiful face with delicacy. Eyes closed, Akaashi took deep breaths to calm his sobbing; Bokuto hushed him with gentle shushing and caressing the soft skin of his cheek. The hiccups became quieter, complying with the owls soft hushes as time went by with the hugging men in the midst of the flowery scent of the shop. The raven looked up to the slightly taller man, he was so deeply infatuated and scared of what may become of this feeling he had for the owl, but he still wanted to explore it. He wanted to delve into what could happen if he took Bokuto’s hand and just went with it, he would elope with the loud male if he wanted to. The raven maneuvered his head so that his lips could kiss the hand that grazed them lightly, so he did, he allowed his soft lips to make contact with the calloused hand that was oh so warm. Bokuto’s heart swelled with the sweetness of the small gesture, he felt the kiss on his hand like a fluttering feather brushing the hard skin. 

The blue eyes looked at the yellow ones with remorse, he opened his small mouth to speak up. “I couldn’t reject your apology even if I tried,” he sniffled a bit, causing his defined collarbone and shoulders to rise up for the strangled breath. He kissed the hand still on his face again before going on, “I-, I just didn’t know what to do!” Another wave of tears fell from his eyes, it was extremely difficult for the reserved male to voice his feelings at the moment, or any other moment really. “I didn’t want to impose on you, I knew that you were fading away from me but I just watched it happen…*sniff* I missed you so much.” Akaashi's face got red with his next words, “and for what?!? I just let you go because I don’t want to be a burden for you, I don’t even know that much about you, like, why do you have so many pets that I never saw at the house? Where are they exactly???” Akaashi felt so insecure, Bokuto must be changing his mind right about now on what he thinks of the raven. The sobbing male looked down in shame as he put his hands together to play with them in nervousness, “I guess I’m not that perfect person.” 

It had become clear to the owl that the raven had reached a crying fit of sadness. Nonetheless, the words were true, Bokuto was never the best explained of what he had begun talking about once he started so it probably left the usually deductive raven with potholes and confusion in mind. The buff male chuckled as his tears dissipated to nothing, he allowed the still crying man to have his small tantrum by tucking his head into the crook of Bokuto’s neck. He pets the silky hair in adoration as he went to sit on the waiting chair, wrapping his arms around Akaashi’s waist so the raven could sit in his lap. It was a vulgar sitting position that would be lewd if they had no clothing on but all the two men could focus on was their steadying breaths and calming heartbeats. Akaashi had his chin resting on the owl’s broad shoulders and hands gripping the man’s biceps with purpose. Bokuto realized that now was a good time to explain himself a little more, he put his hands on Akaashi’s pointy shoulders and pushed to see the flushed face to make the teary male face him. 

He began listing things about him to make the picture clearer to Akaashi, Bokuto never knew how hard the lack of information he had on Bokuto would affect him, the owl was willing to share anything the raven wanted to know about him even if it was his credit card pin. “The pets I talked to you about are actually my patients, I’m a vet with my own practice not too far from here, like you, I basically live there. I come to my dad's on the weekends and the days where you would be there because I don’t want my dad to be lonely and I wanted every chance I got to see you. You were never a burden to me and you never will be, I like you a lot, please tell me whenever you want to talk or have any questions about me because I want to get to know you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know how this chap made you feel! Thanks for reading

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading, please leave comments on your thoughts :)


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